Cyclists expecting to test their mettle against the typical blazing North Texas heat during Hotter'N Hell this Saturday might be a little disappointed, but not by much.

The region has been pitched in a period of cooler temperatures and sporadic rainfall for several days now, and that trends will continue over the weekend, according to the National Weather Service in Norman, Oklahoma.

Matthew Day, a NWS meteorologist, said rain chances and cooler-than-average temperatures will prevail Friday and throughout the weekend as cyclists, volunteers and residents prepare for the largest annual event in Wichita Falls and the largest one-day cycling event in the country.

The NWS is predicting a 40 percent chance of rain Friday with a high temperature of 83 degrees, he said. The best rain chances, he said, will be Friday night into Saturday morning.

The high for Saturday, Day said, will reach 87 degrees, well below the normal average of 95-96 degrees. The heat index on Saturday, however, will push it up to about 91 degrees with about a 30 percent chance of rain, likely scattered, throughout the region.

The high for Sunday, when the final Hotter'N Hell events will play out, is expected to reach 88 with a heat index of about 92 degrees. Rain chances drop on Sunday to about 90 percent.

Day said any rain that does fall over the next several days will be more of those in the agriculture industry would call a cotton shower. He said there is a possibility of some thunder, but the area isn't likely to see any severe weather.

Tropical Storm Harvey intensified Thursday into a hurricane that forecasters said would be the first major hurricane to hit the middle Texas coastline in nearly 15 years.

Day said it won't effect Hotter'N Hell events.

"The impact from Harvey looks to be minimal for the Wichita Falls area," he said Thursday. "It's probably going to track more south and east of that area."

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has ordered the State Operations Center to elevate its readiness level, making state resources available for possible rescue and recovery actions. Abbott also pre-emptively declared a state of disaster for 30 counties on or near the coast to speed deployment of state resources to any areas affected.

Emergency officials Wednesday asked residents along the upper Texas coastline to move or prepare to move inland. Those in low-lying areas were urged to seek higher ground, and those elsewhere were told to monitor official announcements closely.

Forecasters said a "life-threatening" storm surge along with rains and wind were likely as Harvey was intensifying faster than previously forecast. A major hurricane means winds greater than 110 mph (177 kph).

As of midday Thursday, Harvey was about 340 miles (550 kilometers) southeast of Corpus Christi, moving to the north-northwest at about 10 mph (17 kph) .

Once Harvey makes landfall, it's possible the storm then could just stall inland for as many as three days, exacerbating the threat of flooding brought by tropical downpours, the National Hurricane Center said. Some forecasts indicated rain totals over several days extending into next week could exceed 24 inches (60 centimeters).

Harvey would be the first major hurricane to hit Texas since Ike in September 2008 brought winds of 110 mph (177 kph) to the Galveston and Houston areas and left damages of $22 billion.